Garfield family clothing exhibition closes this weekend at the Mentor historic site

A dressing robe that belonged to James A. Garfield and a gown worn by Lucretia Garfield are on view throughout the rooms of Lawnfield this week — the actual cloth of the man who lived and farmed here. After Monday, September 21, the case closes and this close-to-home look is gone.

"Stitched in History," the temporary display of Garfield family clothing at the James A. Garfield National Historic Site, opened June 12, 2026 and closes Monday, September 21, 2026. That makes this weekend the final full weekend to see the garments in the home where Garfield lived and farmed.

What's on view

The pieces on loan from the Western Reserve Historical Society include a dress Lucretia wore and a dressing robe her husband wore, among garments that range from elegant gowns to everyday attire. They are seldom displayed publicly, according to the National Park Service.

The Park Service presents the artifacts throughout the rooms of the President's residence in Mentor, so visitors see the clothing inside the very home where Garfield lived and farmed.

Lawnfield

The house at 8095 Mentor Avenue is the farm at the edge of town — the one Mentor residents have driven past for years. Garfield bought the property in 1876, using it as a working farm and family home. In 1880, he conducted much of his presidential campaign from the front porch, which reporters nicknamed "Lawnfield."

If you go

To see the garments before the case closes Monday, take one of the free guided tours at the site, 8095 Mentor Avenue, Mentor, OH 44060. The site is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. during the June 1 through October 31 season. There is no entrance fee and no charge for parking, and the Garfield home is accessible only by free guided tour. The site's phone number is 440-255-8722.

The garments are on loan and seldom shown publicly, so the display was always meant to be temporary. Skip this weekend, and the only time these clothes will be this close to home is gone.